The End of the Sweater Vest Era

I have trouble with emotions. After all, I’m a man. A big, strong one. So I’m going to use this blog post to tell Hemant Jain how much I’m going to miss him rather than tell him to his face. So if you’re reading this and you’re not Hemant, you might not understand some of the things in this post. And it might get weird. Not super weird, but weird.

Dearest Hemant,

You and me made a good team. Yeah, I understand. You gotta head back East. I wish I could talk you into staying but I know you’re mind’s made up. And it’s what you need to do. We had a good little run though didn’t we? About a year and a half of good times, talkin’ shit, laughing and terrible guitar playing. I’m gonna miss you coming over to my desk and hovering around without saying a word until I acknowledge you. And our whiteboard sessions. How can you give those up? Are you sure you have to leave? You selfish asshole.  I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. Shit. Here come the waterworks. I told myself I wasn’t going to cry… And your rings. Holy shit, I’ve never seen a man wear more rings. When you’d make a firm point in a meeting and you’d slam your hand down on the table. Boy that pinky ring would make a sound. And your obsession with Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder. Despite it no longer being 1998, you stood by him. And I appreciate that about you. And of course, the sweater vest. We all grew to love it. But I remember when they first paired me up with you. Secretly I was like, “This guy’s supposed to be some super awesome creative we imported from India? How cool can he be, he wears sweater vests?” And wear them you did. With pride. Every day. No seriously, every fuckin’ day. But those sleeveless sweaters aren’t what I’m gonna miss about you. What I will miss is the intelligent conversations we had. Well, mainly it was you being intelligent and me listening to you be intelligent. From your published Indian political cartoons, to all the work you do for the environment. I was just always so impressed with how smart and passionate you were about everything you did. And it rubbed off on me. And it probably rubbed some other people the wrong way. But in the best kind of way. You have a knack for making people think. Really think. And that’s what this business needs more of, in my opinion. So I guess the long and short of it is, have I ever loved a man? No, of course not. But did I enjoy being your partner here at Creature? 100%. I’m sure the whole office will miss you. But I will miss you the most. And that doesn’t make me gay. I don’t think.

xoxo,

Pat

Drew, Creature Designer and Certified Zamboni Driver

With great anticipation I am introducing the first in a series of Creature employees profiles.

First up is Drew Hamlet. It’s time to get to know the quiet man behind the signature sometimes glasses. But before I start, imagine what the design department would be like if there were more banjo music playing down there. I often do. But now I know that there can and should be, because Drew knows how to play the banjo.

Drew is a many of surprises and unexpected contrasts starting with where he is from; Stockton, California. (The nation’s most inland port). Some of you may be surprised to know that Drew is a certified Zamboni driver. While this may seem random, it’s not. Because Drew grew up a serious hockey player for the Stockton Colts (even teaching Hockey) while designing websites in his spare time; including one for his dog.

A couple other things I learned that seem to complete the picture. Drew took sign language as his second language. His musical influences are Duke Ellington and The Ramones. You see the pattern now, right? He’s quietly unpredictable and defies most clichés. I didn’t ask him what kind of bike he rides or even if he does, but now I’m curious. The answer will undoubtedly be delivered with the utmost tranquility.

For me, I personally liked kicking off this series with Drew because to be honest I hadn’t really sat down with him before and it’s cool to see what’s behind his great design skills.

Hemant Jain: Comic Extraordinaire

Creature's Associate Creative Director, Hemant Jain, was published on livemint.com, an online news source and partner of The Wall Street Journal. His work was featured on the "full page comic today" and if all goes well, he may be featured reguarly in the newspaper. 

Click here to visit Hemant's comic spread